Personal Top Lists & Rankings

Nicholas Perez33 said:here’s my take on some of our local all-time greats
5. why stakla - daj dođi / SCH - during wartime

Why Stakla.
That whole lucky-break phenomenon they had is actually pretty interesting to think about.
If we're talking about them being a band from "my" era—say, a few years younger than me—
we never really experienced them as being *that* good.
The guys were great and fun to watch, sure, but their recordings and tapes always seemed to land in this weird middle ground—not quite hitting the heights of documented SCH or Sexe at their peak, but still a step above those similar local acts. They were stuck in limbo.

It took me a while to move the Cure, Bauhaus, and Siouxsie out of the "crn ruža / jabuka / oposum" category and into my current obsession zone. For all three, the sonic aesthetic is just incredible; honestly, the whole "darker" vibe matters way less than how good the music actually sounds.

Alex Scott22 said:Well, I knew someone would come after me for mentioning Bauhaus... 🙂

It’s hard to explain... the sound feels sort of plastic... and honestly, the lyrics have started feeling pretty hollow to me...

Don't back away just yet
From destinations set
I dare you to be proud
To dare to shout aloud
For convictions that you feel
Like sound from bells to peal
I dare you to speak of your despise
For bureaucracy, hypocrisy—all liars

Isn't that a little bit pretentious?

Not really. A band that names itself after an art movement and drops references to White Lugosia and Antonin Artaud definitely isn't writing shallow lyrics. 🙂

And as he lay there
Playing games with his pain
He felt his choice of jobs
Was such a mistake
He could have been a doctor in a soft easy chair
Instead he chose three stars
A territorial affair

or

Until exposed became my darker side
Puckering up and down some avenue of sin
Too cheap to ride they're worth a try
If only for the old times, cold times
Don't go waving your pretentious love
He's soliciting on his tan brown brogues
Girating through some lonesome devils row
Pinpointing well meaning upper class prey
Of walking money checks possessing holes
He often sleekly offers his services
Exploitation of his finer years
Work with loosely woven fabrics
Of lonely office clerks
Any lay suffices his dollar green eye

Alex Scott22 said:Top 3 worst "goth" bands:

1. The Cure
2. Bauhaus
3. Bauhaus 3. Sisters of whatever-it-is

You're going on the ignore list, I'm being serious this time 😬

New Order is a hundred times better than Joy Division. If they had actually kept going, I probably would have ended up hanging myself from the sheer amount of depression they'd be dumping on me, rather than poor Ian. 😁

I wouldn't say it was some massive cultural phenomenon, really. You guys were definitely a generation unto yourselves, but for us kids, it was honestly the ultimate soundtrack. Forget Big Black or Killdozer—it was all about STAKLA! 🙂

Susan Clark10 said:btw, you're actually the first person I know who digs that album🙂

mi mlad voljeti "Megapunk". 😬

Susan Clark10 said:New Order is way better than Joy Division.

😱 😱

Hey, watch your mouth over there 🙂

Susan Clark10 said:New Order is easily a hundred times better than Joy Division

blasfemija 😱

New Order is just a damn pop band... and fine, they're good at it... but... but... 🙂

Anyway, regarding Bauhaus:

Bauhaus : Hollow hills Hollow hills Witches too and goblin too and speckled sills Lament repent oh mortal you sol sad sol
Hollow hills
Witches too and goblin too and speckled sills
Lament repent oh mortal you
So sad
So sad

What kind of vibe is this? Lord of the Rings?

I mean, sure... I can handle some of their stuff out in the wild, like She's in Parties...

I just completely tune them out. Ever since I saw their lead singer—what’s his name, honestly, who cares?—running straight into the middle of one of those massive street fights between the punks and the skins, just to grab one of the main skin leaders in town, give him a hug, and buy him a round of beers. 🙄 🙂

Dolgcajt said:Blasphemy! 😱

New York is just a mediocre pop band... I mean, sure, they're decent at what they do... but... but... 🙂

🙂

as for Bauhaus, we'll get to that later 🙂 😁

Nicholas Perez33 said:it’s good, but maybe not quite enough...

Yeah, I guess you get a pass, but if we’re being honest, a true punk shouldn't be vibing with those mainstream pop idiots from the mid-90s.🙂

Top 10 mainstream pop headaches:

1. Miniature 😍
2. Maja
3. ...the day I was left alone
4. Goodbye, Maria
5. We're only here for the money
6. Survival
7. I won't work for dollars
8. When the sun sets again
9. For you
10. Oh Bella Ciao

Dolgcajt said:Well, I figured someone would come after me for mentioning Bauhaus... 🙂

It's hard to put my finger on it... the sound just feels artificial... and honestly, their songwriting has become pretty shallow lately...

The songwriting is subpar, I'll give you that. It's pure gimmickry. But they hit their stride during those pop and glam phases, and at their core, they're legitimate art-rockers.

Is this forum destined to remain this ugly and sluggish forever?

I was actually going to add the Pretenders to a list of underrated bands, but I couldn't think of anyone else to include. Maybe The Undertones?

Generational spikes are such a weird phenomenon. Take The Beach Boys, for example—looking back, they’ve somehow turned into this massive cult legend. For me, they felt about as significant as Colonia does today, if you can even make a comparison like that. As time passes, I’m starting to realize I wasn't actually wrong; damn it, they aren't just some elementary school sing-along tunes anymore, though I still have nothing against them. Honestly, I'd take Doris Day over them any day. And why was why glass such a mediocre demo band to me? I never had the energy or interest to go back and dig them up, and honestly, I don't feel much motivation to do so now. You guys should probably just stick to listening to November November instead... ☕

d.zelig said:Why Stakla.
That whole lucky streak they had is actually pretty interesting to me.
If you consider them a band from "my" era—which is, say, a few years younger than yours.
We never really experienced them as being *that* good.
The guys were great and fun to watch, but their recordings or tapes always felt stuck in limbo—not quite hitting the level of documented SCH or Sexe at their peak, but still a notch above similar bands.

Are you seriously planning on dying in total obscurity, you absolute loser???!!!
We all saw them live, man, so don't act like they're just some band from your era.
Look, "Dođi" is a freaking masterpiece. Seriously, get with the program, kid...

Ugh, damn.

Long haul. said:Blasphemy. 😱

New York is just a decent pop band... and look, they’re good at what they do... but... but... 🙂

I have to object here—both you and vividcanyon2 are being pretty selective with how you're quoting me. 😬
Joy Division is pure depression—the kind that hits you so hard all you want to do is give up. But when I put on New Order? That’s a different story. I actually feel upbeat and find myself wanting to dance. 🙂

It feels like we're just dragging this thing out forever. As specified by:
Yeah, I get that. Honestly, I wouldn't mind if they played somewhere like She's in Parties...

Man, remember back in '96? Pure Looney Tunes vibes... I actually still have my invitation to that Bauhaus party sitting at home. 😍

Susan Clark10 said:Yeah, maybe you get a pass, but I guess a "real" punk wouldn't be allowed to like those idiots from '95🙂

Well, I suppose that "true punk" probably loves those late-era Stiff Little Fingers tracks and thinks Buzzcocks' best album was T. T. T. back in the nineties. Go figure!🙂

Now, I don't want Banderas to come after me, but I'll say right now that I don't have anything against it.😁

Alex Rogers91 said:We didn't put a single Black person on this list...
what kind of people are we???)
HEY DAVID!!!!

🙂 CLAMP CHAMP 🙂

😁

Yeah, seriously—Skeletor has blue skin. Hordak is gray. And Mantena is just some bulging, freakish mutant! Honestly, I think being politically correct is enough for me.

Dana Anderson4 said:Those generational spikes are such strange things. For instance, I’m just now realizing how The Beach Boys have become this massive cult phenomenon. To me, that kind of thing feels similar to how people view Colonia today, if you can even make a fair comparison like that.

Yeah, honestly, if you and dmj were born around 1960, songs like "Valjak" or "Atomic Way" probably would have just gone straight to hell. It’s much like how maybe early The Beach Boys🙏 or early Red Hot Chili Peppers🙂 might have totally grated on my nerves if I had been a punk kid when they first blew up and hit the mainstream...

* - just in case being a cult icon isn't something you're born with

ari peka nikkola said:These generational spikes are weird.☕

Take Nirvana, for example. By all accounts, they should have been my generation's anthem... but I didn't really get into them until later. It was hard to "bring myself down" to Nirvana when I was already listening to Sonic Youth and Joy Division.

Then there’s the current obsession with folk-rock here on the forum. If you grew up in the US during an era where that stuff was everywhere, you just can't embrace it, even as a joke. For a kid like me, those were real traumas. You'd get beat up or looked down on by the local crowds just because you wore a black t-shirt with a band logo on it—total truth.🙂 Or you were just bombarded by that specific sound on the radio and TV every single day. It was exhausting.

Let's settle this once and for all:

Regarding New Order / Joy Division—honestly, who’s actually better than whom? I haven't a clue. But let's be real, neither of them ranks higher than "conditionally listenable."
Looking at that +/- list we talked about, the only two bands that actually hit the mark are on the minus side (Cure and Bauhaus). The Smiths and Sisters are somewhere between "passable" and "occasionally interesting," while Sju and ĐD are just boooooring...
Blue Orchestra is better than Colonia. Not by a landslide, but they still take it. And yeah, better than Ljupka too.
Those November tracks are just as pointless as the Why glass stuff. A total middle finger to Sexi or those early SCH records.

And finally, 999 aren't some semi-obscure London band from 1976. They're more like those "almost made it to the top" legends. Even that random CD I have from around 1990 sounds decent, but everything from the late seventies and early eighties is basically the holy grail...

stormyviper11 said it best. Howgh!

Dana Anderson4 said:Generational spikes are such weird things. For instance, looking back, Blue Orchestra has somehow become this massive cult band. To me, they felt about on par with Colonia today—if you can even make a logical comparison like that.

Hehe, I’ll never forget how crushed I was when my dad bought me a Blue Orchestra cassette back in 6th grade. He thought it was "what people listen to now," and I honestly just burst into tears 😬. Luckily, my mom saved the day a few days later by getting me Depeche Mode instead 😍
.
Back when Sexi was still active, I think I was still a little too young to really get into them. But by the time Why arrived, I was finally musically aware enough to appreciate them, which is why I'm voting "yes" on them being part of the conversation 👍.

Oh, and let's not forget—November is the month of the legendary rock bands 🙏
.

I’ve never once felt that dark, deathly urge while listening to Joy Division. Honestly, when New Order comes on, I’m more likely to end up feeling slightly annoyed—thanks to a few specific tracks—than actually cheerful. Personally, I’d much rather dance to Joy Division 🙂

And don't even get me started on when people play "She's in Parties" out loud. It’s always that song. They've completely ruined it for me 😠 plus, I have some seriously irritating memories tied to it...